OFW - Family Dynamics and Counselling

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Transcript of OFW - Family Dynamics and Counselling

OFW families overseas filipino workers Reasons Why Many Filipinos Like to Work Abroad Modernization and Family II. IV. cultural values and attitudes have changed and new lifestyles have developed. Changes in the More favorable attitude towards working wives and mother 1. transfer of production function from the home to the factoryincrease job opportunitieshigher educational attainmentdecrease in the number of childrensocial legislation protecting women’s right 5. 2. 4. 3. 6. Changing roles of the family. Shared household chores and child care(Egalitarian role structure) Decline in the authority of the husband/father. Shift in the production from home to the factoryMany hours of work away from homeThe working wife’s increase independence from the husbandGovernment’s protection

Decline of the family’s influence on the individual need to cooperateactivities are carried on outside the home and by individualsdependency on outside agencies rather than his/her own family Developing societies of the world today are experiencing a comprehensive process of modernization and change. Industrialization Urbanization Scientific and technological advancementDevelopment of transportation, communication and mass media More permissive norms and behavior Urban concentration of people from all walks of life and the corresponding Breakdown of the consanguineal family as a functional unit. More important to the individual than kin (business establishments, schools or recreational places, as well as in the neighbourhood have become) I. Unstable economic situation High unemployment rate Low salary offered by local companies Contractual employment arrangement Poor benefits OFWs are now more pampered It’s not so lonely to go abroad anymore Discrimination in job hiring No security for better future Corruption, gross inefficiency in government functions, relatively high tax rate, and no sound fiscal policy has put a damper on hopes of an ambitious Filipino. almost a million college graduates on courses that are deemed popular but whose demand is on decline. Nurses, engineers and teachers are paid poorly. Paid higher overseas. Job insecurity for those who are employed under such conditions.No security of tenure. Local employers prefer to contractual employees because it is easier to let go of themHigh unemployment rate ensures a steady flow of applicants, no matter how lame the job offer is. OFWs are now covered by better protection Heroes in the coffers of the country, pumping in billions worth of remittance dollars Filipino communities have mushroomed all over the world: Tokyo, Barcelona, Sydney, Dubai, Singapore, New York and more.. Employers tend to pick the “best” candidates but they’re not necessarily the most qualified for the jobs. Along this development is the plight of more children being left behind by either one or both parents, leaving them to the care of extended family members or friends. Economic benefits not only for the family but the country in generally through its remittances to the security and well being of the family of migrants. major concern here is the social costs of migration specifically to the children left behind. A study by Scalabrini reveals that there is a variation in terms of gender roles when women migrate compared to men. “When men migrate, the left behind wives indeed assumed more responsibilities with their dual roles as fathers and mothers. Challenges of being an OFW III. Children of family with OFW parents feel more comfortable with significant others other than their parents There is a pervading feeling of sadness in the family and a deep longing for the mother/father to come home Young children see their family situation differently from adolescents because they are at a different stage of cognitive development. Adolescents have a better understanding of why their mothers have to go abroad. Most of the time, it is the children who see truth clearly and are aware of what is going on and they try to solve the problem. The children become the "tagasalo" of the father in the family system. Adolescents considered the parents as an automated teller machine (ATM) - “I only ask my father allowances, nothing more.” Children and Adolescents Adolescent children of overseas Filipino workers begin to demand more time from parents as their preference shifts to parental attention from material satisfaction. The strength of the family relationship particularly the children’s closeness to their parents, is reflected in the children’s choice of career and future plans. Search for Role Models OFWs usually come home during Christmas holiday or as permitted in their contract in order to spend this special holiday with their loved loves, since Filipinos are known to be a family–centered society.

People with relatives working abroad are often assumed to be well–off financially. It often becomes necessary for the family to throw a large celebration and invite the neighbors in order to save face.

OFWs do not feel integrated, only accommodated, their presence after long absence may even be seen as disruptive to the household’s daily routine. The Homecoming They will miss the growing up years of their children and their value formation. Lack of emotional bonding that can develop in the relationship when they are physically present. The absence of the parents is substituted through the different technological mechanisms (cell phones, emails, video cams) to make their presence felt by their children even if they are thousand miles away. Through the help of advance technology, a different level of intimacy which also strengthen the linkage and nurturing bonding is being established among migrants families.Tanalega (2002) - global parenting "becomes a long distance love affair synchronized with the fast paced development of technology." Family Life Parenting Style : Global parenting Accompanying this sadness is a need and wish for family togetherness - to be “whole again” (mabuo ang pamilya) most of the fathers need help performing the role of the mother (mahirap maging nanay) Many times, the relationship between OFWs and their families back home is sadly reduced to an almost solely economic one. Even if they dream of finishing college education, they already developed in their consciousness that they could get a higher salary abroad even without having a college diploma. This view is likewise supported by Añonuevo (2002) showing an alarming reality in terms of children’s carrer aspiration in realtion to their parents'. In the 2003 study, 60% of OFW respondents would like to work abroad and would like to take courses in medicine/nursing, teaching, and engineering, architecture. Migration has somehow influenced the children’s choice of career and future plans. This can be a big disappointment and may even discourage the OFW from coming home as often. Support System There are many things we can learn from the children’s resilience and creative ways of coping such as playing, writing, music, thinking positive thoughts, etc. Which can be shared with the father. The extended family lolo, lola, tita, pinsan can help the child.Fostering supportive relationships with the extended family can be a great help to the children. School The school can be made an effective resource outside the family.

Teachers in school can play a major role in building children resiliency and ways of coping. A simple affirmation or praise from the teacher helps the child feel more competent and confident about him/herself.

Having friends in school is a great help to the adolescent in dealing with the sadness of the mother being way Family rituals and prayers help them to feel” family togetherness” and enable them to recapture happy memories. Conclusion •Social costs of labor migration outweigh the economic benefits, with family relationships and dynamics as the first casualty•Increase in “FEMINIZATION” of migration•Implies a redefinition of the economic role of women in society and within the family as well Studies show that children do not recognize economic benefit as a form of careChildren of migrants are less socially adjustedThose with absent mother “tend to be more angry, confused, pathetic and more afraid than other children” (study by Migrante-Anak Pamilya Foundation)The absence of the mother could be the most disruptive in the life of the childrenThe feeling of neglect and abandonment is most felt by the eldest daughter who assumes the mother’s role in the family as the father struggles to take the mother’s roleThis immense responsibility in turn affects their performance in schools. It becomes a burden to the girls in the family. (Tobin, 2005)Children's responses indicate that overseas migration will continue. The children are already entertaining thoughts of migrating and working abroad, their career plans are very much shaped by what would be marketable abroad Effects on Children Parental Absence Creates: •Displacements•Disruptions•Changes in care giving arrangements Extended Family System Provides the children of migrants with care and socializationThe values transmitted to children - basically an emphasis on traits and characteristics to promote smooth interpersonal relationshipReceive spiritual formation from their extended family Reconfiguration of Gender Roles in Family Migrant parents have clearly rearranged care-giving and provider rolesGender roles is different from the traditional stay-at-home mothers and "working" fathers or the emerging dual-earner familiesMigrant families maintain relationships not by presence but by constant and using diff. modes of communication e.g. mobile phones, video net, etc. Socio Economic Situation Better off than the non-migrant childrenPerceive their families doing well in terms of financial capacity (e.g. house ownership)Enrolled in private schoolsBetter health outcomesChildren of migrant mothers tend to lag behind compared to the other children. (Battistella and Conaco, 1998, 1996)